The interplay of companionship and heart attacks might seem a stark contrast to the February obsession with Valentine’s Day love, hearts and flowers. But February is also American Heart Month.

Valentine hearts and roses galore will be delivered, of course. But also this month is a reminder: 1.2 million people in the U.S. will have heart attacks this year. Startling new research reflects the relationship between heart attacks and grief. In any event, love and marriage remain key contributors to longevity and other aspects of a healthy life, particularly for men.

We often hear that in long-married couples, one spouse is so profoundly affected by the death of the other that within a short period he or she dies of a “broken heart.”

In fact, the mortality rate soon after the loss of a loved one is significant, but should not be confused with the “broken-heart syndrome,” called stress cardiomyopathy, which mimics a heart attack but has been known to reverse itself within a short period.

Recent research described in the January 2012 issues of Circulation: The Journal of the American Heart Association tells us that bereavement puts one at greater risk. The risk is 21 times higher than average the first day after the loss of a loved one, and then diminishes over the next month.

Elizabeth Mostofsky, a postdoctoral fellow in the Cardiovascular Epidemiology Research Unit at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston said that “the grief associated with bereavement involves increased feelings of depression, anxiety and anger, and those have been shown to be associated with increases in heart rate, blood pressure and tendency for blood clotting – all of which can lead to a heart attack.”

Regarding those studied for actual heart attacks, Mostofsky said that “an important message from this study is that people dealing with the death of a loved one should recognize that this involves a period of acutely heightened risk.”

She added, “Therefore, the bereaved person and friends and family should make sure that the person with the loss takes regular medications. Also, if the person experiences such symptoms as chest pain, nausea, lightheadedness and shortness of breath, do not ignore the symptoms and dismiss them as harmless symptoms associated with the stress of loss. Rather, a bereaved person experiencing stressful symptoms should seek immediate medical attention.”

Most often it is high blood pressure that we associate with heart disease, and this has not changed. The journal Circulation also reported that researchers at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine “analyzed more than 60,000 patient records using data collected over 60 years and concluded that bringing high blood pressure under control at any time reduces risk of disease.”

Whatever the emotional roller coaster that love can bring, most people want to be in love, even in the face of the fact that so many relationships they see every day appear to be crumbling.

Consider one of the most comprehensive reports about marriage and health – the Lamberto Manzoli Study in 2007 of 250,000 elderly adults in the U.S. and Europe. Its researchers determined “a significantly higher risk of death for those who were single, divorced, separated, and never marrieds in both genders.”

To underscore the marriage advantage: “The Protective Effect of Marriage for Survival: A Review and Update in April 2011,” published in Demography, pointed out the “consistent survival advantage for married over unmarried men and women.”